Lone Star to sell Tokyo bank to Advantage

The revived Tokyo Star Bank may face plenty more trades yet as private equity players show mastery in extracting profits.

The recently announced $2.4 billion friendly bid by Japan-based private equity firm Advantage Partners for Tokyo Star Bank TSB is another link in a series of transactions which has enabled private equity players to extract large sums from the once-ailing lender. Public shareholders have failed to benefit to the same extent, however.

Once known as Tokyo Sowa Bank, TSB was a victim of the Japanese banking crisis of the 1990s. Crushed by its non-performing loan burden, and with no Japanese...